Above average temperatures lie ahead for the week with temperatures in the mid-90s, prompting head advisories in a lot of the region, it will feel like triple digits, tips on fighting the heat if you have to be in include seeking shade and drinking a lot of water.
As temperatures creep into the 90s across the region this week, some areas are opening cooling stations. In Lawrence County, the Lawrence County Community Center and Blaine Community Center will be open from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. as cooling centers.
Intake has begun for a new chance for housing in Breathitt County. Through disaster relief funding granted by state leaders, officials are planning to build seven to eight homes on Highland Avenue in Jackson. Fahe is coordinating intake, which closes July 13, while the Housing Development Alliance is working on constructing the homes. The homes will be a variety of sizes.
Police have now identified those involved in a three-vehicle fatal crash in Pike County on Wednesday. The crash happened just after 7 a.m. on Ferrell’s Creek Road, at Belcher. According to Kentucky State Police, Jeremy Gunter was driving his Ford F-150 when he crossed the center line and struck a Ford 500 driven by Donald Thacker. He then hit a Toyota RAV4 driven by Ella Taylor. Taylor died at the scene. Gunter and Thacker were taken to the hospital for treatment of their injuries. The crash remains under investigation by Kentucky State Police.
The driver of a car that crashed while fleeing police in Wise County earlier this week has now been charged with homicide. Dimitri Jontae Green, of Charlotte, N.C., was the driver of a silver Audi that was wanted in a theft case in Hazard. Virginia authorities were notified to be on the lookout for the car once it crossed into that state, and Wise County deputies spotted it in Pound. That prompted a chase, during which the car drove into oncoming traffic at speeds over 100 mph, narrowly missing several other vehicles.
A West Virginia doctor has been indicted on federal charges of illegally distributing anti-anxiety medicine. Dr. Brian McDevitt, who serves as medical director of the Chapmanville Medical Center in Logan County, has been charged with three counts of unlawfully distributing a controlled substance. The indictment alleges he distributed Klonopin without a legitimate medical purpose on three occasions last year. Each of the charges carries a potential sentence of up to five years in prison and $250,000 in fines. In addition, prosecutors are asking for Dr. McDevitt to forfeit his medical license and the property housing Chapmanville Medical Center, if he is convicted.
The Federal Highway Administration has completed its environmental review of the Mountain Parkway Expansion’s final 13-mile segment, which found no significant environmental impacts would result from constructing the new roadway. That determination marks a necessary step toward advancing the project to construction.
A Floyd County woman was arrested on several charges after Kentucky State Police reported they responded to a breaking and entering call at Hueysville. According to an arrest citation written by KSP Trooper Keithan Hamilton, on June 1, he was dispatched to the calla and was informed while en route that Ashley D. Hicks, 39, had attempted to break into a residence. Hicks was lodged in the Floyd County Detention Center on charges of first-degree possession of a controlled substance (methamphetamine, first offense), first-degree possession of a controlled substance (fentanyl), first offense trafficking in a controlled substance (carfentanil or fentanyl derivatives), first-degree trafficking in a controlled substance (less than 2 grams of methamphetamine, first offense) and possession of drug paraphernalia.